Ashley Madison fallout

[Psyche]

Because the military in the US treats infidelity as a prosecutor offense, there are predictions of the hack release of Ashley Madison (married person hook up service) accounts leading to blackmail of career military users.

Ashley Madison Fallout Threatens To Engulf Military As Extortionists Target Users And Owners Are Hit With $578 Million Lawsuit

But it seems to me that now the hack is public, there would be no point paying to silence blackmailers. The data is either irreversibly out and will eventually be reported by someone, or the data is deniable and they guilty party should just hold their ground.

So I am not sure any such blackmail scheme would work, but that may be seeing it as a rational issue when the effected people are more likely to be panicked and emotional.

 

[Rowe992]

Well good for the idiots that actually goes on a website to find people who are married like themselves to cheat with. Why not get a divorce if you are not happy with your partner? I hope all their spouses find out and get a divorce!

 

[LilAnn]

I had heard bits and pieces about this, but didn't know what it was actually about. Thank you for posting this! Well, here's my 2 cents worth:
1) Why would people use their real info? If its because they need a credit card, you can sign up to get a prepaid debit/credit card on paypal, under whatever names on the paypal account. I thought it was cheaters code to cover their bases.

2) They're cheaters. Who cares what happens to them?

 

[Psyche]

They hack revealed their email and other info that might identify them even with a false name, although I assume they had to use the same name as on their form of payment/credit card.

I have no particular sympathy for cheaters but that does not mean I think they should be tortured by blackmailers or commit suicide as is apparently happening. Or even that they should have their careers destroyed in some modern day Scarlet Letter incident. Two wrongs does not make a right.

It is also the case that some people entered another person's email address (probably just a fake that happened to actually exist). So some of the people being identified in the hack are innocent.

 

[LilAnn]

They hack revealed their email and other info that might identify them even with a false name, although I assume they had to use the same name as on their form of payment/credit card.

I have no particular sympathy for cheaters but that does not mean I think they should be tortured by blackmailers or commit suicide as is apparently happening. Or even that they should have their careers destroyed in some modern day Scarlet Letter incident. Two wrongs does not make a right.

It is also the case that some people entered another person's email address (probably just a fake that happened to actually exist). So some of the people being identified in the hack are innocent.

No one who was innocent or their name or e-mail was used, should have to face the repercussions. Thats really wrong!

Originally, I was typing excuses and retractions of the callous statement I made originally. I still know you're right, and I want to agree with you. But I'm not that good of a person. But the ones who are actually cheaters, They made their bed, (or someone else's bed), now they can sleep in it. Hearing about someone who sets out to cheat makes me feel very little sympathy for them. It isn't a case of "oops, I got too drunk last night" or "oops, I just couldn't tell her 'no'". These circumstances are very deliberate. They found the site, signed up, checked out different people's profiles, picked the one they thought may be the best, and then initiated contact. They could have used enough sense to say "this is bad, I should stop," at any at any given moment... and they didn't.

They made the decision to do what they did, and if they can't handle the consequences, its their own fault.